Alford pleas, however, are exceptionally rare, composing only 6 percent of all the guilty pleas in state and federal courts, according to a study published in 2009. But others use guilty pleas and sentence modifications to free people from prison in dubious prosecutions. The victim failed at first to pick out Mr. Harris in a photograph array, but then, at trial, identified him for the first time as the man who had attacked her. Legal experts say that even if defendants who enter guilty pleas are eventually released, they are often subject to collateral effects that could include losing government benefits or the legal right to vote. It’s a balance.”From the moment he was charged with rape and robbery in 1989, Mr. Harris, 57, has insisted on his innocence.

Source: New York Times November 23, 2017 18:04 UTC